Conventionally, in a vehicle (in particular, an electric vehicle or a hybrid vehicle), devices such as a motor, a battery; or an inverter are connected to each other with a shield wire, and a shield connector structure for connecting the shield wire and a case of the device to the ground is proposed (for example, see PTL 1). As shown in FIGS. 9, 10A, and 10B, a shield connector 10 described in PTL 1 is configured to connect a shield wire 1 with a metallic case 6 of a connection object, and to make a connection portion watertight. The shield wire 1 is a coaxial cable having a conductor 2, an inner insulating cover 3 covering a circumference of the conductor 2, a shield portion 4 composed of conductors such as a braided wire provided on a circumference of the inner insulating cover 3, and an outer insulating cover 5 coveting a circumference of the shield portion 4. The metallic case 6 is provided with an insertion hole 7 into with the shield wire 1 is inserted, and a bolt hole 8 screwed with a bolt 16 for fixing a housing 11.
This shield connector 10 includes: the housing 11 through which the shield wire 1 is inserted and fixed to the metallic case 6; a shield member 12 electrically connecting the shield portion 4 of the shield wire 1 with the metallic case 6; a first seal member 13 interposed between an inner surface of the shield member 12 and an outer surface of the outer insulating cover 5 of the shield wire 1; a second seal member 14 interposed between an outer surface of the shield member 12 and an inner surface of the insertion hole 7 of the metallic case 6; a shield pipe 15 connecting the shield member 12 and the shield portion 4 by swaging; the bolt 16 for fixing the housing 11 to the metallic case 6; and a rear holder 17 provided on one side of the housing 11 to hold the shield wire 1.
The housing 11 is fixed to one side (outer side) of the metallic ease 6, and holds the shield member 12 in between the metallic case 6 and the housing 11. The housing 11 includes: a housing main body 21; a fixation portion 22 fixed to the metallic case 6; a wire guide portion 23 through which the shield wire 1 is inserted; and a tubular projection 24 extended further to the other side (inner side) of the metallic case 6 than the wire guide portion 23 and inserted into the insertion hole 7.
A diameter of the shield member 12 is enlarged in three steps from the other side toward the one side of the metallic case 6, and the shield member 12 has a first tubular portion 31, a second tubular portion 32, a third tubular portion 33, and a connection portion 34 continued to the third tubular portion 33 and folded along one side surface (outer surface) of the metallic case 6. Further, when the first tubular portion 31 is connected to the shield portion 4 of the shield wire 1, and the connection portion 34 is sandwiched between an outer surface 6A as the one side surface of the metallic case 6 and an opposite surface 26 of the housing 11, the shield, portion is grounded with respect to the metallic case 6 via the shield member 12.
The shield pipe 15 includes: a tubular portion 41 through which the shield wire 1 and the first tubular portion 31 of the shield member 12 are inserted; a flange portion 42 extended outward in a radial direction from one side edge of the tubular portion 41; and a swage portion 44 in which a part of the tubular portion 41 is deformed inward in a radial direction to press the shield portion 4 and the first tubular portion 31 of the shield member 12. After the shield wire 1 and the first tubular portion 31 of the shield member 12 are inserted through the swage portion 44 which is not deformed yet, the tubular portion 41 at the swage portion 44 is swaged and deformed using a swaging tool, and the swage portion 44 presses the shield portion 4 and the first tubular portion 31 of the shield member 12, thereby the shield, wire 1 and the shield member 12 are pressure-bonded together and electrically connected to each other.
The shield member 12 is attached to an end of the shield wire 1 by swaging the shield pipe 15 as described above, and the housing 11, the rear holder 17, and the first and second seal members 13, 14 are attached to the end of the shield wire 1. Then, the shield wire 1 is inserted into the insertion hole 7 of the metallic case 6 from the other end (terminal 9 side) of the shield wire 1. Then, the connection portion 34 of the shield member 12 is sandwiched between the fixation portion 22 of the housing 11 and the outer surface 6A of the metallic case 6, and the holt 6 penetrating a through-hole 25 is screwed with the bolt hole 8 of the metallic case 6, thereby the housing 11 is fixed to the metallic case 6. In this way, when the connection portion 34 of the shield member 12 closely contacts the outer surface 6A of the metallic case 6, the shield portion 4 of the shield wire 1 is electrically connected to and grounded together with the metallic case 6 via the shield member 12, and thus the shield connector 10 is assembled.